A thoughtful gift for art appreciators and admirers of the highly acclaimed Canadian artist, Alex Colville!

In 1967, Canada celebrated a key milestone in this young nation's history: the 100th anniversary of Confederation. To commemorate Canada's centennial, the Royal Canadian Mint unveiled new designs for every denomination of circulation coins. From the one-cent to the silver dollar, each featured a reverse image designed by artist Alex Colville–including the hopping rabbit that adorned the centennial five-cent coin, as recreated with this beautifully detailed coin.

Colville's choice of an animal theme was symbolic; each creature was selected to express the values and virtues that best represented the Canada he knew.

"The rabbit is common, much loved by children, perhaps because of its vulnerability. It survives by alertness and speed, and is symbolically connected to the ideas of fertility, new life and promise–it is a future, or united, animal." – Alex Colville

A thoughtful gift for art appreciators and admirers of the highly acclaimed Canadian artist, Alex Colville! Order today!

Special features:
• Features the unique commemorative design by famed Canadian painter Alex Colville that adorned the five-cent circulation coin in 1967!
• The obverse features the second effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by Arnold Machin.
• This coin's 40mm diameter size makes it double the size of the original, allowing for a larger canvas that offers a more detailed view of each coin's reverse image.
• This proof coin is 99.99% pure silver, with selective gold plating.
• A great opportunity to revisit a key Canadian milestone, and one of the most memorable years in Canada's history.
• Your coin is GST/HST exempt.

About the Design:
The reverse features the unique commemorative design by famed Canadian painter Alex Colville that adorned the five-cent circulation coin in 1967. Using multiple finishes and selective gold plating to further enhance the design, this recreation of the hopping rabbit is rendered in fine detail and on a larger scale, allowing a closer look at the original design featured on the centennial nickel. Engraved on the reverse is the face value "5 CENTS", the word "CANADA" and the updated year "2015". The obverse features the second effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by Arnold Machin.

Did you know?
Preparations for a commemorative circulation series first began in 1964 when then-Minister of Finance Walter L. Gordon invited artists across the country to submit their ideas for the centennial coins, with a $2,500 prize to be awarded to the winning designs. But without a clear winner, the panel of judges invited five more artists to submit their coin concept ideas; at last, on April 20, 1966, a winner was declared: the centennial coins would feature the animal-themed designs by Canadian painter Alex Colville of Sackville, N.B.

David Alexander Colville (1920-2013) was a highly acclaimed Canadian painter, printmaker, draughtsman, engraver and war artist. His figurative style of painting is striking, and often features personal subject matter that was inspired by the world around him. Colville's iconic works such as Horse and Train (c. 1953) and To Prince Edward Island (1965) are clear examples of the artist's ability to depict moments that are seemingly suspended in time, yet laced with pending change or a quiet tension.

Much like his paintings, Colville's striking coin designs featured clean, geometrically precise lines. And while the centennial coins were only issued in 1967, their popularity remains–as does Colville's rich artistic legacy.

• Issued in 1967, this five-cent coin was minted at the Royal Canadian Mint's Sussex Street location in Ottawa, Ontario.
• Each of Canada's circulation coins issued in 1967 featured an animal: the one-cent featured a dove, the 10-cent featured the mackerel, the 25-cent coin featured the bobcat, the 50-cent had the wolf and a Canada goose adorned the reverse of the silver dollar.
• The five-cent coin nearly featured a spruce tree, but the original design was deemed too complex at the time.
• Alex Colville would also design the Governor General's medal in 1978; in 1982, Colville was made a Companion of the Order of Canada and won the Governor General's Visual and Media Arts Award in 2003.

Packaging:
Your coin is encapsulated and presented in a Royal Canadian Mint-branded maroon clamshell with a black beauty box.

Reviews

Absolutely Beautiful

5

We always celebrated finding a Centennial nickel as a kid, and set them aside never to be spent. Same feeling, when I saw this coin. I just had to have it in my collection.
It is a masterpiece stamped in silver and gold.

Kroc

Winnipeg

2016-02-16

Yes

Another Example Of Mint Quality

5

Makes a great display of Canadiana

Six pack jack

ontario Can.

2015-12-12

Yes

Rabbit Nickel

5

Hi there: I wish you would redo the whole 1967 set in 1 oz pure silver like the rabbit, it looks so beautiful, and I think a lot of older people would a retake of those coins.
Thanks for doing this one

Doug

Waterloo, Ontario

2015-12-04

Yes

Remembering the Centennial Jackrabbit Nickel

5

For many older Canadians, the coins that will stand out as significant in their lifetime was the set of Centennial coins issued in 1967 to commemorate Canada's 100th birthday(1867-1967). The five cent coin had the sprinting jackrabbit, a common site in Canada. What makes this coin special is the artist Alex Colville, who would definitely rank as among Canada's premiere artists right up there with the Group of Seven, tom Thompson, Emily Carr, Robert Bateman etc. The entire Vintage Nickel Series is great, bu, in my opinion, this is the gem. Magnificent coin.

You can be assured that the Mint fully guarantees the superior quality and craftsmanship of its products. If you are not completely satisfied with your purchase, you can simply return it to us in its original packaging within 30 days and we will gladly offer you a replacement (subject to product availability) or send you a full refund. In the case of a defective product, we will accept the return up to one year from the date of purchase.